Spinning top



W. L. JON E5 Feb. 11, 1936.

SPINNING TOP Original Filed May 9', 1935 Mic-d Feb. 11,- 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SPINNING Tor Walter L. Jones, Kenmore, N. 1:.

Application May 9, 1933, Serial No. 670,080 Renewed July 6, 1935 5 Claims. (01. 40- 60) one of its objects is to provide a toy of this character which is not only simple and inexpensive in construction but which is so designed as to' be soft and yieldable to render it nonbreakable and harmless to the user and at the same time sufllciently rigid to permit it spinning at high speeds.

Another object of the invention is to provide a spinning top which is made of rubber and shaped to provide hollow, air tight, substantially bell-shaped ends.

In the accompanying drawing:-

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the spinning top embodying my invention. Figure .2 is a longitudinal section thereof taken on line 2-4, Figure 1. Figure 3 is a detached perspective view of the central core or reinforcing element of the top.

Similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views.

Heretofore spinning tops of this character or diabolos have been made from solid material,

usually wood, and are therefor subject to breakage when falling from a reasonable height and are dangerous to the user or users, it being understood that thesetops are usually spun on a cord connected at its ends to two sticks held in the hand of the user and after the top attains a high spinning speed the same is projected high into the air and as it comes down is caught again by the user or is passed to and fit to another party equipped with the cord and sticks.

My improved spinning top is made of rubber or .like elastic or flexible material and consists of a reel or spool-like body of substantially double bell-like shape oppositely facing frustoconical portions in terminating at their enlarged ends in rounded or substantially globular air tight heads II. The portions Ill and heads jointly form hollow sections, the walls In being preferably comparatively thick and the walls of the heads being comparatively thin and readily yieldable or shock-absorbing when subjected to impact.

- These hollow sections are preferably mounted .on

a spool-like body or reinforcing element consisting of metallic hub-sections I! of substantially frusto-conical shape with their smaller ends disposed in fixed abutting relation to provide centrally of the top, or at its point of balance, a string-receiving groove l3. For the purpose of properly centering these hub-sections and assisting in holding them together, I employ a screw stud ll, as seen in Figure 2. The hollow rubber portions III, II of the top may be applied to the companion hub-sections by a pressure-blown molding process or in any other appropriate manner, the walls of said sections having openings l5 therein in which the rubber portions are vulcanized and securely held; As shown in Figure 3, each of the hub-sections I2 is provided intermediate its ends with an annular shoulder or oifset I6 resulting in the provision of stepped walls, the rubber portion l 0 enclosing or embracing the outer wall and terminating at or flush with the adjoining end of such resulting inner wall, as depicted in Figure 2.

By constructing the top in this manner, a perfectly balanced, hollow air tight structure is pro- 10 vid'edwhich can be spun at high speeds and which possesses sumcient yieldability or shock-absorbing qualities to render it harmless in use, even if one should he accidentally struck by it, and danger against breakage is eliminated. 15

I claim as my invention:-

l. A device of thecharacter described, comprising a rigid open-ended, spool-like body having openings therein, and hollow rubber heads applied to and enclosing the open ends of said 20 body and having portions extending through and interlocking with said body-openings.

2. A toy of the character described, comprising a substantially spool-like metallic body having a central, bridge wall and an annular string- 5 receiving groove in the plane of said wall, the .outer marginal edges of said body having openings therein, and hollow-symmetric end portions of elastic material disposed about and projecting axially beyond said body and having portions ex- 30 tending through said body-openingsin permanent vulcanized relation thereto.

3. A toy of the character described, comprising a pair ofsubstantially cone-shaped elements disposed in opposing axial relation with their 35 tapered ends in abutting relation to provide an annular string-receiving groove, and hollow rubber heads molded to said cone-shaped elements 1 and projecting axially beyond the ,same, the

flared ends of said elements having openings 40 therein through which the adjoining portions of the rubber heads extend during the molding process to permanently unite the heads to said elements.

4. A toy of the character described, compris- 46 ing a rigid spool-like body open at its ends and having openings therein adjacent the edges thereof, and substantially bell-shaped heads of rub- WALTER L. JONES. 60 

